The chance for trainer Bob Baffert to have a horse in this year’s Kentucky Derby appears to be nearing the final turn. A Kentucky judge on Thursday denied an injunction request that would have allowed Baffert-trained horses to compete in the 150th running of the Derby next month.
Amr Zedan, the owner of Arkansas Derby winner and Baffert-trained Muth who filed the lawsuit, plans to immediately appeal.
The legal battle stems from the disqualification of 2021 Derby winner Medina Spirit, trained by Baffert and owned by Sedan. The horse tested positive post-race for a legal medication that is not permitted on race day, prompting Churchill Downs to suspend Baffert for two years. That suspension was set to expire following the spring meet in 2023. However, in July, track officials added another year to the suspension, saying that “a trainer who is unwilling to accept responsibility for multiple drug test failures in our highest-profile races cannot be trusted to avoid future misconduct.‘’
Baffert, a six-time Derby winner, has had no violations in any state since. The 71-year-old needs one more Derby win to break a tie with Ben Jones for the most by a trainer.
Zedan filed the lawsuit in April, after Muth won the Arkansas Derby and accumulated enough points to be eligible for the Derby. He argued that the horse was being denied a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and labeled Churchill Downs’ decision a “personal vendetta” with no merit.
Jefferson County judge Mitch Perry, however, noted that Zedan was aware of Baffert’s suspension and previously transferred horses to other trainers (Taiba ran in the 2022 Derby, trained by Tim Yakteen), permitting them to compete at Churchill. Yet he “voluntarily made the decision to not transfer (Muth) to a new trainer,” Perry wrote.
The judge wrote, “The Court appreciates the once-in-a horse’s-lifetime nature of the Kentucky Derby, but the other aspects at play prevent this factor from weighing fully in favor of (Zedan) and injunctive relief.”
Perry added that allowing Muth into the field would come at the expense of another Derby entrant (only 20 horses can enter the starting gate) and could hurt the integrity of the race. “Public trust and confidence in the integrity of the races run at Churchill Downs are essential to its business,” Perry wrote in his ruling. “It is also in the public interest to ensure that all those who attend or watch races at Churchill Downs can be confident in the fairness and integrity of the sport.”
But the judge did not dismiss the lawsuit entirely, leaving open the chance to appeal, which Zedan intends to use. A spokesperson for Zedan Racing Stables said the owner will appeal the decision “on an emergency basis as soon as possible.” Timing is of the essence, as Derby entrants must be on the Churchill Downs’ grounds by April 27.
“The court’s rejection of the defendant’s motion to dismiss affirms our view that it was nothing more than a transparent delay tactic aimed at ensuring its unjust ban remained in place for the 150th Kentucky Derby,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “We are pleased that the court denied that motion and turned to considering the merits of our temporary injunction motion to let one of the top-rated horses in the nation, Muth, run in the race.
“We are disappointed in the court’s decision on our request for temporary relief, as we believe the court did not recognize the significant investment Zedan Racing has made, based on statements by Churchill Downs that if this trainer had no additional violations, Zedan Racing’s horses would be able to compete.”
Baffert, who is not a party in the lawsuit, did not return a request for comment.
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